Beverly Boulevard in Los Angeles between Western Ave and 1rst has always been a quirky living outdoor gallery of odd hand-painted signs. This stretch of Beverly was a center of Los Angeles nightlife during the thirties (so an old guy once told me), but the riots of the early 1990’s weren’t kind to the neighborhood. It’s been more than rough around the edges for as long as I’ve been passing through. Between 2000 and 2004 I had a second-floor walk-up studio above a store front-church and bodega that sold magic potions to ward off hexes, Virgin de Guadalupe statuettes, and international phone cards. Here’s a record of one early Sunday morning walk ten years ago. Most of these signs are gone now, but painted over with newer versions of the old themes.

Signpainter Carlos Aguilar began his career in art and lettering at the age of 13. Inspired daily by the art in Los Angeles, he began to recognize the beauty and unique style in signs and murals all over the city, and began to practice his craft in earnest. With over ten years in experience as owner of Sign Graf Custom Signs, Carlos has now opened El Sapo Studio, a collective of experienced sign artists who work to create the best custom sign work available. He specializes in custom type, hand lettering and graphics, modern and traditional designs.

The name Monkey Pete comes from an underground puppet theater that I ran from 1998 until about 2004. Monkey Pete’s Puppet Theater sowed anarchy at clubs, bars, and galleries in Los Angeles and San Francisco. Part of the Monkey Pete experience included a carnival atmosphere, and half the fun of producing the shows was painting carnival side-show banners and signs to enhance the audience experience. Click to read an article about Monkey Pete that appeared in the Los Angeles Time Sunday Magazine way back in 1999.

Just rambling through Chinatown, North Beach, The Tenderloin…